HOUSTON \u2014 Houston Rockets president of business operations Gretchen Sheirr, wearing a yellow hard hat adorned with a red Rockets \u201cR\u201d logo, pushed aside a plastic curtain and stepped into the future WNBA locker room of the Houston Comets.<\/p>\n
The WNBA Board of Governors approved the sale of the Connecticut Sun to a company led by Rockets owner Tilman J. Fertitta in May. The relocation of the franchise to Houston to revive the Comets has created a construction zone at the Toyota Center, which is preparing to welcome its WNBA tenant for the 2027 season.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are at a mad sprint,\u201d Sheirr told USA TODAY Sports during a September tour of the facility.<\/p>\n
Houston is building a locker room, practice court, weight room and offices specifically for the Comets as part of the $180 million \u201cToyota Center Reimagined\u201d renovation.<\/p>\n
The return of the Houston Comets, the WNBA\u2019s original dynasty, falls somewhere between renovation and restoration.<\/p>\n
The circumstances of the sale created unique timing and logistics. The Comets had less than a year between the acquisition and the team\u2019s first game to get operations off the ground, which includes absorbing dozens of team employees who lived in Connecticut.<\/p>\n
Sun president of basketball Jennifer Rizzotti, general manager Morgan Tuck and head coach Rachid Meziane are relocating to Houston to retain their roles.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe product, the players, that infrastructure, the culture that they built, the young talent \u2013 all of that is coming (from Connecticut). But we are building a business from scratch,\u201d Sheirr said. \u201cSo it\u2019s a combination of relocation, expansion and then, when you have this legacy and dynasty, that\u2019s part of our messaging and the excitement.\u201d<\/p>\n
The move also coincides with a crucial growth period for the WNBA, which plans to expand to 18 teams by 2030, and asks fans to reconcile the return of one beloved franchise with the loss of another.<\/p>\n
The relocation to Houston left of Sun fans disappointed and angry after the WNBA refused to approve the Mohegan Tribe\u2019s attempts to sell the team to two separate ownership groups that would have kept the team in New England: first to Boston Celtics\u2019 minority owner Stephen Pagliuca and then to former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry.<\/p>\n
Instead, months after WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert declared in June 2025 that Houston was \u201cup next\u201d to receive an expansion franchise, Fertitta’s group reportedly paid a record $300 million fee for the Sun.<\/p>\n
The relocation is \u201cbittersweet,\u201d said Tuck, who has served as Sun general manager since 2021. She and Rizzotti told USA TODAY Sports they felt a responsibility to players and staff to see the move through.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe best way for me to have handled that was to keep it completely separate and understand that I could feel a sadness and a disappointment and a nostalgia for what the Connecticut Sun has meant to the state,” Rizzotti said. “But also an excitement and a feeling of opportunity to move forward with Morgan and crew to continue to build something special.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Comets\u2019 legacy includes four consecutive WNBA championships between 1997 and 2000, with star player Cynthia Cooper winning Finals MVP in each of those seasons. Even after the team folded due to financial struggles in 2008, the Comets\u2019 banners continued to hang in the Toyota Center rafters.<\/p>\n
Now, Houston is inheriting a rebuilding Sun team that finished each of the last two seasons with an 11-33 record. Tuck said the goal is to make the WNBA playoffs in 2027.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were able to shape our young core a little bit more and so now we\u2019re looking at, how do we bring in a few pieces that can really lead this young core that we have and help us take that next step?\u201d Tuck said. \u201cIt\u2019s just really coincided in a way with Houston and going through a transition at the same time, but I\u2019m really proud that we\u2019ve stuck to our vision so far.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/6ae4c2a5d0c1a.image.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
A company led by Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta purchased the Connecticut Sun and will move the team to Houston, reviving one of the original WNBA teams, the Houston Comets.<\/p>\n
Troy Taormina, Imagn Images<\/p>\n
Refreshing one of the WNBA\u2019s original teams<\/p>\n
Comets 2.0 won\u2019t look the same as the original Comets.<\/p>\n
WNBA rules legally prohibit reviving an old design as a primary logo, meaning the Comets couldn\u2019t simply reproduce the franchise\u2019s former branding. But Jose Lopez and Taylor French, Houston\u2019s creative director and senior director of marketing operations, wanted to design logos that simultaneously captured the team\u2019s history and moved the franchise forward.<\/p>\n
The Comets unveiled their new logos on Thursday, Oct. 29. Out of respect for Connecticut, the Comets delayed their logo reveal until after the Sun\u2019s final season concluded. The Comets plan to unveil their uniforms, court design and mascot later in the offseason.<\/p>\n
The franchise filed federal trademark applications for its design marks and is moving ahead with the Comets branding even though the WNBA is battling to trademark the Houston Comets name after a company tied to rapper Travis Scott filed a competing application.<\/p>\n
The Comets have already begun selling season tickets and Sheirr said the community response has been strong. The Comets hosted weekly WNBA viewing parties around Houston this season to get fans invested in the league. In August, they organized a bus caravan for Comets season ticket depositors to go to Dallas for a Sun vs. Wings game. About 300 fans made the trip.<\/p>\n
Comets fan Markie Gee, a Houston native, recalled attending WNBA games at The Summit when she was a child. Her favorite player was point guard Kim Perrot, who died from breast cancer before the 1999 season and had her No. 10 jersey posthumously retired by the Comets. Gee said she was elated when she found out the team was returning.<\/p>\n
“The camaraderie, I felt like we were all families sitting in the stands,” Gee said. “It was just a big party, a good time, and I want that feeling back.”<\/p>\n
While Sheirr expects some overlap between Rockets and Comets fans, she said Houston will treat its WNBA team as a distinct product. Sheirr and her staff spent the 2026 WNBA season scouring other WNBA arenas. They observed fan arrival times and concessions habits, mascot behavior and how fans engaged with timeout or halftime activations.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are things that are different in a WNBA feeling than in an NBA feeling,\u201d Sheirr said. \u201cWe find in the WNBA that it\u2019s more than just the competition on the court; it\u2019s the community feeling of you being around other like-minded people, supporting these amazing women athletes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The WNBA the Comets joined in 1997 was a vastly different league from the one that exists today, both in terms of structure and cultural relevance. In 2026, the first year of the league\u2019s new media rights deal, the WNBA set several viewership and attendance records in the regular season and WNBA Finals. Player salaries are skyrocketing thanks to a new collective bargaining agreement, and WNBA team valuations are rising, too.<\/p>\n
Sheirr worked for the original Comets. She said recent expansion teams such as the Golden State Valkyries \u2013 which made the WNBA Finals in the franchise\u2019s second year of existence \u2013 show how much the league has changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biggest inspiration that we have taken from other teams is just expectations of how much this league has grown and how much enthusiasm there is from the fan base,\u201d Sheirr said. \u201cI\u2019ve been here 25 years. \u2026 Trying to compare that to now is not relevant at all. And so, seeing these other teams launch has been just a great reminder to not slip back into what you think might be right.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/6ae4c2a60fe81.image.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
A graphic shows the future Houston Comets facility.<\/p>\n
Graphic via HoustonComets.com<\/p>\n
Building a winning culture in Houston<\/p>\n
Rizzotti is a Connecticut native who has worked for the Sun since 2021, but she also won two WNBA championships as a player with the Comets in 1999 and 2000.<\/p>\n
In Houston, Rizzotti will reunite with two of her Comets teammates, Cynthia Cooper and Sheryl Swoopes, who joined the franchise as global ambassadors. The third member of the Comets\u2019 Big Three, Tina Thompson, is expected to be heavily involved in some capacity.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I remember about Houston is just the excitement of stepping onto that floor, the expectation that we were going to be competing for championships every single year and playing alongside some of the best players to ever play the game,\u201d Rizzotti said. \u201cMorgan and I, coming from a background of UConn, we also have a very high commitment to winning. So I think we\u2019re excited to be coming back to that culture.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Rizzotti and Tuck hope to replicate the success the Comets had on the court, they\u2019re determined to prioritize continuity from the foundation they built in Connecticut.<\/p>\n
Meziane is on board for his third season as head coach, Tuck told USA TODAY Sports. Although other basketball operations staffing decisions are not yet finalized, Tuck said the Comets\u2019 staff will look \u201cvery similar\u201d to last season.<\/p>\n
This offseason is pivotal for the Comets, who are tied with the Toronto Tempo for the best odds to receive the No. 1 overall pick in the 2027 WNBA Draft. USC guard JuJu Watkins and Texas forward Madison Booker headline the draft class and are projected to be the top two picks.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s hard to kind of pass up on those two just because of how much of an impact that they have on their current teams and their style of play,\u201d said Tuck, who was drafted by the Sun third overall in 2016. \u201cI think we all see that it could potentially translate really well to the pro game.\u201d<\/p>\n
The final draft order will be determined Nov. 15 at the WNBA Draft Lottery. Then it\u2019s full steam ahead to free agency in February, followed by the April draft.<\/p>\n
Whoever the Comets draft will be expected to make an immediate impact as part of a young roster. Fifth-year center Olivia Nelson Ododa, the most experienced player under contract, is coming off the best statistical season of her career. Forward Aaliyah Edwards blossomed into a fearsome post presence and vital leader, while 22-year-old Le\u00efla Lacan is considered one of the league\u2019s best young guards.<\/p>\n
Rizzotti believes the team\u2019s culture and track record of player development, along with the relocation to a larger market, will help sell free agents on the Comets.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlthough we may not have star power yet, it\u2019s easier to attract that when you build the foundation the right way,\u201d Rizzotti said.<\/p>\n
Houston will likely need to fill at least four roster spots through a combination of free agent signings and the draft. Rizzotti said that current players helped identify two main areas of need: a clutch scorer and veteran leadership.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe did lose a lot of games late in the game because we didn\u2019t have somebody that could just go get a basket for us or get a quality shot for somebody else,\u201d Rizzotti said. \u201cAnd then just continued veteran leadership, players that know how to win, are vocal about holding their teammates accountable in the right ways and not afraid to challenge their teammates and their coaches.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Comets worked with Sun strength and conditioning staff to design the weight room and adjacent offices being added next to practice court in Toyota Center, which will serve as the Comets\u2019 full-time home.<\/p>\n
The Comets\u2019 locker room is expected to be finished in January, and the team will have a dedicated medical treatment area and a dining area shared with the NBA team. The Comets worked with the WNBA to make sure the facilities met the standards required by the league CBA, including a nursing room and a family room.<\/p>\n
The Comets offered every employee in the Sun organization the opportunity to relocate to Houston. Sheirr said \u201calmost all\u201d of the Connecticut business staff accepted positions with the Comets, and those people start work in Houston on Nov. 2.<\/p>\n
The team\u2019s head of player relations and strength staff arrived immediately after the WNBA regular season ended. Tuck and Rizzotti expect to move in November, while players are expected to start arriving early in 2027.<\/p>\n
Tuck said there’s pressure inherent with reviving a team that helped put the WNBA on the map. But if all goes to plan, the Comets will hang more championship banners at Toyota Center.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Houston Comets name really means something, and it\u2019s meant something for a long time,\u201d Tuck said. \u201cSo I think it\u2019s great that we get a chance to kind of continue that legacy but also put our spin on it at the same time.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793398217_633_6ac68557e74b3.preview.jpg\")
<\/p>\n